Computer-based and/or electronic gaming systems are known that provide a shared virtual environment for many players to interact in a virtual world. With increased availability and connectivity to the Internet, many players from all over the world can interact in the virtual environment and perform various game objectives. Such gaming systems typically do not have a virtual world geography that parallels the real world. Location-based games use the real world as their geography. Some location-based games add virtual locations on a map that parallels the real world geography. Such games, however, are typically focused on real world objectives. These games typically do not include a virtual world that parallels the real world and that acts as a virtual game environment in which many players can interact and perform various game objectives in the parallel virtual world by navigating and performing actions in the real world.
A parallel reality game providing a shared virtual world that parallels at least a portion of the real world allows players to interact in the virtual world by navigating the real world. A parallel reality game can have many positive benefits, such as encouraging physical activity and getting players to interact more in towns and communities. However, if the virtual world does not effectively mirror the real world, controlling the parallel reality game by navigating the real world can feel contrived, discouraging game play.
Lack of agreement between the real world and the virtual world can also make a parallel reality game dangerous, encouraging players to navigate to areas in the real world that are not safe, such as into heavy traffic or other hazardous areas while playing the game. The game may also encourage players to interact in their community in non-constructive or illegal ways, such as entering private property to access corresponding locations in the virtual world that have desirable virtual elements. Finally, it may be more trouble than fun to play the parallel reality game if virtual elements are located at corresponding hard to reach locations in the real world that are far out of the player's way.